


The Wind Beneath You

by KitKatWitch, MissingFire



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Kylux - Freeform, M/M, Monarchy, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, Unseelie AU, chapter specific tags in notes, fae, please read the chapter notes!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-19
Updated: 2016-07-19
Packaged: 2018-07-25 08:25:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7525507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KitKatWitch/pseuds/KitKatWitch, https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissingFire/pseuds/MissingFire
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With the Unseelie Court preparing for war, the youngest Monarch finds himself having to choose his Raven Guard, an elite squad of warriors trained from youth in the ways of the Life Force of the court to protect the royal line at the cost of their own lives. With the largest war in the history of fae looming closer, will the Monarch be able to find his wings in time to lead? Only the winds will tell.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Wind Beneath You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the whirlwind that is my Unseelie AU for this wonderful ship. I've loved it for a while and finally got the courage to type up my au for all of you with help of my wonderful beta (and sometimes co-author)!  
> I hope you enjoy! Please keep in mind that in later chapters I will be putting chapter specific tags in the note section here, but if they spoil anything they will not be put into the work tags so nothing gets spoiled! After every chapter I will explain anything about the AU bits in the chapter that you may have questions about, but hit me up anytime at writtenlullabies on tumblr if you have any questions I don't answer!  
> ~ MissingFire

_Blood orange. The lilies had been blood orange._  
  
_"Armitage, are you listening? I am trying to explain how the training for the King's Guard works and you are too busy staring at the damned flowers. Pay attention boy, before I throw you in to spar with the older warriors to teach you a lesson."_  
  
_Pulling his gaze away from the vines of moonflowers clinging to stone wall of the training ground, Hux looked at the warriors sparring before them, his expression stony as he tries to mimic the cold disinterest in his father's eyes. He had been listening, but the night following his father has been long, and he couldn't help but remember the books waiting for him back in his quarters. "I apologize father, please continue. I am listening."_  
  
_His father sniffed briefly, but gave a curt little nod. "Apology noted, Armitage. Now, I was explaining how the age of a raven warrior does not necessarily play into their abilities. Many warriors are fledglings until well into their third century, while there are recorded cases of fully graduated Ravens as early as 100. Do you understand what this means?"_  
  
_His father's eyes were piercing, like ice through his heart, as he shook his head. He did not know what this meant, or why they were watching the fledglings spar together. He didn’t know what it meant, didn’t particularly care what it meant, and couldn’t imagine why it might be important for him to know. This night had not made sense in the slightest to him, and yet again he thought back to the books he had left to answer his father's summons._  
  
_The answer did not please the older Monarch. "Typical boy. It means that you must put them up against each other every day to judge those that are moving faster than their peers. They were not born into power like you; keep that in mind when your time to pick your guard comes."_  
  
_Hux kept his face like stone, even though internally he frowned. Picking his guard was not something he was looking forward to. "Yes, father."_  
  
_"Now watch. Tell me what you see."_  
  
_Looking down at the warriors again, Hux held back a sigh. He saw a group of guided minds: fae determined to give their lives to keep the Monarchs safe. As it was in their dark society. All who were born with the Monarch’s Kiss would be destined to spend their future preparing for life under the Monarch’s wings. It was an honor; celebrated, even. By every fae in their court._  
  
_Fools, in his opinion. Damned fools to believe that anybody's life was more important than their own. If only they-_  
  
_Suddenly his thoughts broke off as he spotted something new. Something out of place._  
  
_"Father, who is that?"_  
  
_"Who, Armitage?"_  
  
_"The boy; the rest of your warriors training down there are at least a century. But that one, he cannot be past his third decade." Looking up to his father's face, he tried to read the emotions ghosting under the surface, hoping to find something hidden there. But, as always, there was nothing to be read._  
  
_"You are right. His name is Ben, and he came from the forest and demanded to be let into the training program." Hux could tell there was much more to the story than that, but he knew better than to press his chances. Instead, he frowned, tilting his head and analyzing the boy._  
  
_"And you let him? He looks weak; that is unlike you father."_  
  
_I am not weak._  
  
_Biting his lip, Hux looked down again, his eyes growing wide as he met those of the boy he had singled out to his father. Fear trickled down his spine at the pure fury unleashed in the dark irises of the young fae. Surprise that he was heard. And that anyone dared to speak to him in such a manner._  
  
_I will show you. All of you._  
  
_Holding his breath, Hux watched the boy charge at the largest fledgling, flinching slightly as the determined youth was thrown to the ground, a cry escaping his now bloodied lips. But he got back up and charged again, and again, despite all his failures._  
  
_'Give up. You will only find more pain in this training, Ben.' He sent the silent thought to the boy, not wanting to continue watching his beating._  
  
_"_ **I'll show you Monarch. I'll show all of you and when I kneel before you, then you'll see!"**  
  
_Not letting the surprise of the boy answering him vocally show on his face, he nodded, done with what his father wanted him to see. Turning on his heel, Hux walked away from the ledge of the balcony, his father following behind him with an air of amusement surrounding him. He kept his eyes forward as they moved, back straight and arms folded behind his back. But he could still feel the dark eyes of the child boring into the back of his skull._  
  
_"I do believe you have made a friend, Armitage."_  
  
_"I would rather not, father. I do not expect to see him again."_  
  
_"Those weak in youth but filled with determination are those most likely to surprise you."_  
  
_Hux noted the words, but filed them in the back of his mind, to be ignored until later needed. Right now there was only the thought of returning to his books. That, and the lilies._  
_They had been blood orange._

  
**

Opening his eyes slowly, Hux blinked against the soft light of the moon that filtered through the vines across his bedroom window. The same dream had been coming to him each night, ever since his father had told him he would be picking his personal guard on the next full moon. _Just another step along the path of becoming king_ , he had said before leaving. It sounded a bit more sarcastic when Hux repeated it in his mind.  
  
With a sigh he pulled the covers off of his body, hissing at the chill of the early spring air. The full moon was tonight, and if he were to stay on time he would need to get dressed quickly and meet his father in the training yard. The thought of picking Raven Warriors like he picked his clothes every evening left a strangely sour taste in his mouth. He did not normally care about other fae like this, or at all, and yet the dream-  
  
The dream. That was it. A small moment of childhood guilt that was choosing this stressful time to try and make him feel something he wouldn't let himself normally feel. Guilt was for fae not born into a ruling family; he couldn't afford this feeling.  
  
Stepping into a pair of tight black pants, Hux pulled on a deep emerald tunic with another sigh. If he was going to be meeting the men today that would guard him until either his or their life ended, he was going to at least look decent. After the tunic was in place, he grabbed his belt and sword, attaching both around his waist snuggly before slipping into a pair of knee high boots and throwing a short cape over his shoulders. As an afterthought, he grabbed his favorite black cap, placing it over his vibrant red locks.  
  
"No time like the present..."  
  
With yet another sigh to the sky above, he headed out of his quarters towards the training yard, cursing his family name and responsibilities for the first time in his life.

**

"General! It is a pleasure to see you finally joining us. I feared that you would miss seeing the squads go through their individual drills. After all, they will be guarding you, since you seem to be drawing the gaze of our sister court so early in your life."  
  
Turning slightly to look at the man addressing him, Hux bit back a groan, not wanting to show his displeasure at his father having asked the higher court elves to attend today in his stead. Many of them most likely had children or siblings down below, and would use this process today to try and gain favor with him. If only they knew how he really felt about Raven Warriors. He doubted they would be this eager if they did. It was an old tradition, one he saw no point in honoring as he doubted any guard would be able to make an impression on him.  
  
"Forgive me, lords and ladies. The walk here was rather pleasant and I did not want to waste such lovely air. It is rather stuffy in here, and reeks of soaked leather. But let us begin; I cannot wait to see the graduated squads in all their glory."  
  
Clicking the heels of his boots together, Hux turned to focus on the training court below, watching the guards follow complex orders that the trainers yelled in rapid succession. This part of the ceremony was the only part he had somewhat looked forward to. He personally oversaw the training exercises for his men, and having been making improvements on the standards there for many moon cycles already, what he saw left him impressed with what these warriors were currently being put through. This wouldn't even be the extent of what his personal warriors would be capable of, and Hux found himself almost excited as he watched the movement below.  
  
A few of the fae didn't keep up, or stumbled from time to time, and as the evening moved into the darkest part of the night, Hux dismissed squad after squad until only one remained. Their armor wasn't as bright as the others, their clothes dusty from a hard ride. These warriors had been out in the field, fighting or scouting Hux didn't know, but they had been called back for this ceremony today.  
  
But he knew that not once had they stumbled or misheard an order like many others, and were the only ones wearing gear that showed recent use. As a leading force in his father's army, these were all observations that pleased him greatly. Now for the part of the night he was least looking forward to; the 'ceremony' that he would have to follow to get to know the squad he had chosen.  
  
"Second in command, step forward and state your name, then those of your specialists. I want to know the names of those that I will be entrusting my wings to."  
  
Nodding in unision the group broke formation, the shortest figure stepping forward from their spot in the rear of the squad. Female, Hux noted, before they even had a chance to remove the midnight black helmet from their head. Suddenly the bright unmarked skin of a high born glistened in the moonlight, and disappointment filled Hux to the brim of his boots.  
  
"General, I am the one called Kksna, high court elf proudly serving her Monarchs by using her talents to become a Raven Warrior worthy of your service. Tszin is our weapons specialist, Conia the tracker, Serha excels in hand to hand combat and assessing situations, Jrone is our healer. We are the most diverse squad in this moon cycle sir. The only High Court elves being myself and Jrone. Tszin is from the mountains, Serha from the desert, and Conia from the border forests."  
  
"Thank you, warrior. Now your leader; I need to know the voice of the one that I will be trusting my life to." The silence after his last word stretched longer than he would have liked, and Hux fought to keep the displeasure from showing in his current expression. A few of the higher court elves were shifting in their seats slightly, obviously worried that their kin down below would ruin the fragile balance held in the stuffy room.  
  
The tall figure stepped forward. "I am Kylo Ren, leader of the Knights of Ren, Raven Warriors now tasked with keeping our Monarch safe. I know not where I come from, only that I am not high born. I have been trained in everything I would need to keep your wings from falling, my lord. Until the day I fall, I shall be the wind beneath you." The deep voice was muffled by the heavy beaked helmet the fae had failed to remove, but Hux wasn't worried. He knew he would choose well for his protectors, even if the tradition felt old and lost on him. But the voice from under the helmet had eased the fears he felt the night before. The dream was forgotten; only the future mattered to the fiery red head now. He stood tall, ready to recite the words he had memorized for weeks now.  
  
"Kylo. Kksna. Tszin. Conia. Serha. Jrone. I, Armitage Hux, future Monarch to the Unseelie Court, accept your pledge. If you are the wind beneath me, I need not worry as you will carry me far. Gather your things, and let the servants bring them to your new quarters in my tower. Knights of Ren, I welcome you to the beginning of this new era."  
  
The squad all dropped to their knees, the thud of leather on the cold stone echoing in the silence that followed the pause in the ceremony. Hux surveyed their still bodies, noting the variety in build and height before signaling for the servants to bring his new Ravens the newest addition to their uniforms. The elegant feathered cloaks were placed gently on the kneeling warriors shoulders, followed by a shuffle of padded feet as the lower fae quickly cleared the training yard. Silence settled once again.  
  
"Fly."  
  
The command was barely a whisper, but Hux watched as one by one the Knights of Ren leapt to their feet and then to the sky, the cloaks swallowing their bodies and shifting until six large ravens flew above all of those in attendance. They circled a few times, testing out their new wings, before quickly taking off towards what Hux hoped would be the quarters his father had had cleaned at the bottom of his tower. He hadn't been keen on the idea of sharing his isolated sanctuary with other fae, but as everything else tonight, tradition demanded it.  
  
Spinning on his heel, Hux nodded to the higher court elves, eager to go back to his bedchamber and finish his night in peace. Success at having found a squad capable of impressing him coursed through his veins, and Hux allowed a pleased smile to cross his face briefly. Even his thoughts on how old and unnecessary this tradition was couldn't stop a feeling of a victory be spoiled. His father would be pleased with his choice.  
  
**I told you I would show all of you, Monarch.**  
  
Stumbling slightly, Hux continued walking, his smile and feeling of success gone. The voice wasn't familiar, but the way it was delivered sent shivers through the thinly inked wings on his back. A distant memory threatened to surface, but with extreme self control Hux forced it back. He had other things to worry about, and six 'Knights of Ren' to get familiar with before the next campaign his father sent him on. The only thing that lingered was a faint glimpse of color.

  
_Blood orange_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! I think the only thing to explain is that Raven Warriors are gifted the shape shifting cloaks to help ease their transformation, and it is considered a very high honor to be given one. Ravens are able to transform without them, but it can be painful and some aren't able to do it successfully without the cloaks! This is why even though Hux doesn't appreciate the "old ways" he made sure to give his Raven Guard (term for a whole squad, as Raven Warrior is singular) the cloaks to end the ceremony.
> 
> I want to explain the type of fae that Hux is a little more but I also don't want to spoil anything. Just know that he has intricate and beautiful tattoos/birthmarks of butterfly wings on his back!
> 
> As always if you have any other questions hit me up on tumblr at writtenlullabies!


End file.
